1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gas separation devices and in particular to a bearing in a supporting arrangement for a plurality of filter bags in a baghouse.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art discloses a variety of supporting arrangements for suspending tubular filter bags within a baghouse.
Typically, the filter bags are suspended in rows from a shaker shaft or beam extending across the baghouse above each row of filter bags. This type of arrangement generally provides that the shaker shaft be periodically oscillated to shake the filter bags suspended from it, thereby dislodging particulate materials accummulating on them during filtering operations. Those materials then fall into a hopper or other receptacle at the bottom of the baghouse where they are removed from the hopper and disposed of.
Each of the shaker shafts is supported by a bearing at each of its ends which accommodates rotational oscillation of the shaft by a suitable drive mechanism connected to the shaft. While this arrangement has proven to be satisfactory for shaking the bags, experience has shown that the center of the beam tends to sag or bow downward due to the weight of the bags. As a result, relatively abrupt load concentrations tend to develop in the bearings during bag cleaning operations. This in turn has led to uneven wear and fatigue of the bearings requiring their replacement.